CPP Investments and Equinix Acquire atNorth in $4bn Bet on Europe’s AI Infrastructure Boom

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Equinix have agreed to acquire Nordic data center operator atNorth from private equity firm Partners Group in a deal valued at about $4 billion, the companies said Friday, marking one of the largest recent transactions in Europe’s fast-expanding digital infrastructure market.

CPP Investments will commit roughly $1.6 billion for a 60% controlling stake, with Equinix taking the remaining 40%. The companies said the acquisition is expected to be immediately accretive to Equinix’s adjusted funds from operations, underscoring that atNorth is already a cash-generating platform rather than a speculative buildout.

The transaction comes amid intensifying institutional demand for data center assets as artificial intelligence workloads reshape power and capacity requirements across Europe.

atNorth operates eight data centers across Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden, with additional sites under development. The geographic mix places the company in markets prized for abundant renewable energy, relatively low electricity costs, and naturally cool climates — all critical advantages as AI training clusters drive up power density and cooling demands.

The operator has secured 1 gigawatt of power for future expansion and outlined a pipeline of roughly 800 megawatts over the next five years. In the data center sector, access to grid capacity has become as valuable as land or capital. Across Europe, permitting delays and transmission bottlenecks have constrained new supply, making secured power allocations a strategic asset.

The Nordic region has emerged as a preferred destination for hyperscale cloud providers and enterprise customers seeking to align infrastructure growth with environmental targets. Hydropower in Norway and Sweden, geothermal energy in Iceland, and growing wind capacity across the region allow operators to market lower carbon intensity — a differentiator as regulators and investors scrutinize energy use tied to AI expansion.

AI workloads are significantly more energy-intensive than traditional enterprise hosting. Training large-scale models and running inference at scale require dense compute clusters, often supported by high-performance graphics processing units. That dynamic is reshaping site selection criteria, pushing operators toward regions with reliable, scalable, and lower-carbon electricity.

For Equinix, the acquisition strengthens its presence in a region where demand from global cloud providers and AI developers is accelerating. The California-based company has been expanding its footprint to capture rising demand for colocation, interconnection, and hyperscale facilities. The atNorth portfolio provides immediate scale in Northern Europe, along with a development pipeline aligned to AI-driven growth.

Immediate accretion to adjusted funds from operations suggests the platform can contribute to earnings without a prolonged ramp-up period. That matters in a capital-intensive sector where development cycles can span several years, and returns depend heavily on pre-leasing and power availability.

For CPP Investments, the deal expands exposure to infrastructure-like assets with long-duration, contracted cash flows. Pension funds globally have been increasing allocations to digital infrastructure, viewing data centers as a hybrid of real estate and utility-style assets, supported by secular growth in cloud computing, streaming, enterprise digitization, and AI adoption.

Partners Group acquired atNorth in 2022 for an undisclosed sum and has since overseen its regional expansion. The sale is another example of the private equity playbook in digital infrastructure: acquire a scalable platform, invest in development capacity, and exit to long-term institutional capital seeking stable yield with structural growth.

Europe is navigating both an AI capacity buildout and a broader debate over energy security. Data centers have drawn regulatory attention in some markets because of their power consumption, prompting governments to weigh economic benefits against grid strain. Operators with secured renewable energy supply and established regional relationships are therefore better positioned to advance expansion plans.

The new ownership structure positions atNorth to compete for hyperscale contracts in a market where scale, power access, and sustainability credentials are increasingly decisive. The $4 billion valuation signals continued investor confidence that AI-driven demand will sustain elevated growth in Europe’s digital infrastructure sector for years to come.